01.09. Chapter 9 The Demoniac—the Man as Seen at the Feet of Jesus
Chapter 9
Before we consider the subject of this man’s being sent away from the feet of Jesus, where, as we would think, he might have so fitly been allowed to stay—it will be well worth our while to survey him as seen there by others—by the Gadarenes, his fellow-countrymen—those who had only too good right to know who he was; in whom, from very self-interest’s sake, the miracle wrought should have excited other feelings than those which it did. As soon as tidings of what had occurred got abroad, all the people round about from city and country came together to Jesus. At His feet, they see the former demoniac sitting clothed and in his right mind; they are struck with awe; then they hear again how the wonder had come about, "and concerning the swine," and they beg Him to depart out of their coast.
They came to Jesus, and found the man.
What a sight! Man in the highest form—Jesus; man rescued from the lowest form—a habitation of devils—"the man who had the devils."
Here a great sight was presented to them; and we would have thought that the presentation of that picture—that first sight which struck their eye, ought to have produced an entirely different effect from what it did. The Gadarenes were unconscious even of that which they might have known. The man now sitting quietly before them was the one who had been the terror of the neighborhood. They had doubtless known plenty of instances of his violence—their wives and children probably trembled at the mention of his name; was it nothing that he should be made harmless, and that men could henceforth "pass by that way" which he had frequented and made unsafe? The blessing even in this light was great—there they might read it, even in a single glance at Jesus’ feet; but it does not seem to have come home—it was overborne by the destruction of their swine.
It is amazing how slow men are to perceive, and to acknowledge, even the visible advantages which come from the working of Christ. They see men, who were the pest of the neighborhood, becoming its blessing; those who set the worst example—now setting the best; those who used by their idleness to be a burden to others—now industrious for themselves, and so on; and they will not see how good among them must be the presence of the One by whom such wonders are wrought. The world takes but little note of the great things it owes to Christ’s working—in its anxiety to get rid of Christ Himself. That they should be unconscious of the fullness of the wonderful miracle, we need not be surprised. They could not, indeed, know how complete was the antagonism between Jesus and the devils; but the bare fact of His having power over them might have awakened some other thoughts than those which then filled their hearts. But they did not; and we here see that what we think would be invincible evidence, may often prove inoperative altogether.
We have been amazed that men could not be worked upon, as regards their own souls, when they saw and recognized the change wrought upon some neighbor, or in some member of their family; but that fear of loss, of having to give up, as they think, what they now value, counteracts it all. This is the power of self-interest—to hinder sight, or enquiry. The Gadarenes found no swine—and this hindered their understanding or valuing what they did find. The wonder of the cured demoniac—that of the presence of One by whom such folk could be cured—could not compete with the value of the swine! That the devils had gone out of the man was more than counterbalanced by their having gone into the swine. They found "a man," where they had known only a ’habitation of devils’—but they did not enter into that reasoning; they had not the spiritual wit to see and accept this great fact, and to refuse to put "a man" in competition with swine!
It is, indeed, amazing how low self-interest will sink us—how it will make us forgetful of high charities; how it will so fill us with its own seen affairs, that we cannot interpret other seen things which are before our very eyes, in which, in truth, our deepest interests are concerned.
Wherever there is a great door open, there are the many adversaries; there is not a thing of earth—but that has in it the capacity for interfering with the things of heaven! Even when Jesus is most manifestly present—are to be found ’many swine!’
Great personal loss is occasioned by lack of spiritual discernment. So is it here. These Gadarenes, if only they had been equal to the occasion, might have argued blessing for their own afflicted ones, or themselves, from the presence of Jesus. Had He cured such a one as the demoniac—then what might He not do for them and their loved ones! But they did not think of utilizing Jesus; they thought only of the swine! They knew not the time of their visitation.
Jesus, with the demoniac at His feet, was a proclamation to them that a Healer was in the midst of them for them; but they failed to hear it, and the opportunity passed away.
We need not be surprised. It is an awful thing to allow ’swine’ to come into competition with Jesus. The swine are always more or less present, and more or less attempting to do this; but when with full set purpose men give them the upper place—it is no marvel if Jesus leaves them. And although it is hoped that the reader of these pages is one who prefers Jesus to all others, (else why has he taken up a book on such a subject as the "Feet of Jesus" at all,) still let him—yes, and let the writer, too, be on their guard against the intrusion of these swine!
We must not depress them into a position of no value, if we are to be taught by the story of the demoniac; for the swine were of value in the eyes of the Gadarenes. The material things which come into competition with Christ, have their power from their value; and we must overcome that power by a high appreciative standard of who the Lord is, and what He does. We must say, ’such is Jesus—that all competition is forbidden.’ And from His gracious dealings with others, we must draw arguments for ourselves. Has He received and transformed such and such an one? has He given a blessing to such another? What are these good things which He has scattered here and there—do they belong to the recipients of them alone? Or have they nothing to say to me?
If I have spiritual discernment—they are all for me as well. For these men have not exhausted Jesus. It is true that virtue has gone out of Him, and He has perceived it; but He desires that more virtue still should flow from Him to others.
It is good, then, to see and note what Jesus has done—to understand it—to use it—to see those sights which may now be continually seen in the spiritual world—Jesus, and the demoniac at His feet!